Foster Talks Independence

Diaspora
Foster talks Independence
MARCH 16, 2014
EVERY BAJAN STUDENT of Caribbean
literature should be able to answer
a simple question.
It is: what do George Lamming,
Kamau Brathwaite, Austin “Tom”
Clarke and Cecil Foster have
in common?
At the top of the list is the excellent
use of language. Next they were all
born in Barbados. Thirdly, they are
among the country’s and the
Caribbean’s most celebrated authors
and each has achieved literary acclaim
by studying and writing outside of
their native land.
“Many Barbadians earn their
international spurs by going abroad
and competing in the wider world,”
Dame Nita Barrow, the only
woman to serve as Barbados’ Governor
General, once said in New York.
“Among them are the writers.”
Lamming’s In the Castle Of
My Skin; Brathwaite’s The
Arrivants; Clarke’s Growing Up
Stupid Under The Union Jack and
The Polished Hoe; and Foster’s No
Man In The House have risen to the
level of classical writings, among the
literati and people at all levels of
society in Britain, Canada, the United
States, Barbados and elsewhere.
Now a new book by Foster,
Independence, seems destined
to join that august body of published
SUNDAY SUN. 31A
independent. But what I set out to do
with Independence is to look at what
independence has brought. One of the
guiding points for me writing the book
was a line in the Barbados national
anthem, ‘we write our names on
history’s page with expectations
great.’ I wanted to look and see,
at least in the very early years, how
many of the expectations were being
and awe-inspiring work.
actually realised.
“In his new work, Cecil used the
“In essence, the book is a
language that reminded me of Kamau continuation of the dreaming and
Brathwaite’s ‘nation language’,” said
the aspiration we talked about in ‘No
Clarke, who is among Canada’s best
Man in the House,” added Foster, a
known writers. That gives the book a
university political science professor.
certain intelligence and acceptability
“It was also a moment of discontinuity
by people who may not have been
where for the first time, the
Barbadian but who could recognise
characters couldn’t appeal to
the importance of independence in
outsiders but in fact had to take
their lives,” said Clarke. “What I found full responsibility for them. In
interesting is that there isn’t much
that sense, then, for me,
talk about independence from a
‘independence’ is not only a
political point of view but from a
political achievement but it about
sociological point of view. That was
a sense of personal responsibility.”
very revealing and very liberating.”
Language, as Clarke noted at a
The book, explained Foster, “picks
book launch reception at the Barbados
up from where No Man In The
Consulate-General in Toronto to
House, my first novel left off. Back
introduce Bajans to Independence,
then I looked into the island coming
is key to the reading pleasure of those
into independence and the last scenes
who buy the book.
in that book were about elections in the
“Foster’s book brings back memories
country and the decisions being made, of my grandfather when I was growing
a kind of election referendum on the
up in St Peter,” said Haynesley Benn, a
country going on to become
former cabinet minister who
CECIL FOSTER says his new book
Independence picks up from where
his first novel left off. (GP)
is now the Consul General in Toronto.
“I readily recalled my grandmother
and the words she used when we were
growing up in St Peter. The book holds
your attention. It isn’t flat and it has a
bit of humour. It is inspiring and I
commend it to Barbadians wherever
they are.”